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Child Support
Federal and state laws require OPA to implement support collection orders against affected City employees. OPA receives collection orders from:
- Attorneys
- Courts
- State Disbursement Units (SDU)
If OPA receives a support collection order against you, deductions will be taken from your pay starting on your next pay date. If you believe the amount deducted for child support is in error, you should contact your attorney or SDU.
Orders Initiated by SDU
If the collection order was initiated by SDU, OPA sends the amount deducted from your pay to them.
If an erroneous amount appears to have been deducted from your pay, contact OPA at 212-669-8555 to resolve the problem.
If there is an apparent under-deduction, contact OPA at 212-669-8555 to resolve the problem. OPA has records of your deductions that may help you resolve the apparent discrepancy with SDU.
Records of Child Support Payments
Deductions for child support will be indicated on your pay statement. If you have multiple collections, each deduction will be itemized. Deductions for arrears will be shown separately and will include a goal amount.
Your pay statements are the best source of historical information about your support deductions. You should keep them as a record of your payments.
If you are paying child support or receiving payments through the New York State DCSE, you can access your payments and disbursements through the New York State Office of Temporary & Disability Assistance, Division of Child Support Enforcement (DCSE) website.
Maximum Amount of Child Support Deductions
According to the New York Civil Practice Law and Rules (CPLR) section 5241 and the Consumer Credit Protection Act (CCPA), the maximum amount that can be withheld for child support is between 50% - 65% of your disposable earnings, depending on your situation. Disposable earnings are your gross earnings minus federal, state and local withholding taxes, Social Security and Medicare taxes, and regular pension plan deductions (not including pension loan or arrears deductions).
If you have multiple deductions for child support, and you believe the total deduction for child support is above the prescribed limit of your disposable earnings, contact OPA Payroll Customer Service Division Ordered Deductions Unit at ChildSupport_Unit@fisa-opa.nyc.gov or 212-669-8555.
When, upon review, OPA confirms that your total deduction is above the CCPA limits, OPA will forward your current disposable earnings statement to a SDU for review. OPA will remit the ordered deduction amount to a SDU. The SDU will determine the amount of your deduction that will be adjusted or prorated and the amount to be refunded to you, if any.
Please note that prorated deduction amounts may result in the incurrence or increase of arrears that you will owe on each child support case. You must also contact the NYC Family Court to alert them of any situation in which you are not able to meet the ordered deduction amount in full.
Get more information from the NYC Family Court
To get an estimate on how much a parent might owe in child support in New York State, you can use the HRA OCSE Child Support Calculator.
If you are an employer, use the New York State Income Withholding Calculator to help you determine the amount of child support withholdings to apply to an employee's pay.